First time candidate Joe Kennedy III collected $1.3 million from April to June, new Federal Election Commission reports show. Kennedy, the son of former Congressman Joe Kennedy III, ended the quarter with $1.9 million cash on hand for his bid for the Fourth Congressional seat, more t...

By David Riley

The Herald News, Fall River, MA

By David Riley

Posted Aug. 2, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 2, 2012 at 2:14 AM

By David Riley

Posted Aug. 2, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 2, 2012 at 2:14 AM

Newton

» Social News

First time candidate Joe Kennedy III collected $1.3 million from April to June, new Federal Election Commission reports show. Kennedy, the son of former Congressman Joe Kennedy III, ended the quarter with $1.9 million cash on hand for his bid for the Fourth Congressional seat, more than any of his five opponents.

Newton residents contributed $53,191 to Kennedy’s campaign during the quarter.

Kennedy and his competitors collectively raised $1.6 million, making the race to fill retiring U.S. Rep. Barney Frank’s seat in the 4th District the most expensive House race.

Maurice Cunningham, a political science professor at Umass-Boston, called Kennedy’s total April to June fundraising “astounding,” but not unprecedented for a candidate from a prominent family.

The fundraising total for House races now stands at a combined $12.7 million. Candidates are holding onto most of that cash, having stockpiled a total $11.9 million toward the Sept. 6 primary or Nov. 6 general election.

Some voters will see more competitive congressional races than others, but this is an unusual election year in all districts. In addition to being a presidential election year that will likely bring high turnout, candidates are running in newly-drawn districts for the first time, often spending money to try to connect with voters in unfamiliar territory.

“The guy who raises the most money doesn’t automatically win, but you do need enough money to run a credible campaign,” Manning said.

The second quarter was likely the final push to collect cash before campaigns begin spending in earnest in the fall on advertising, traveling the district and paying staff, Manning said.

Cunningham said he expects candidates for the House races to continue to collect money during the third quarter, though candidates in the bigger races will have to compete with the presidential and U.S. Senate campaigns for airtime.

“They're going to run out of places to spend it, in terms of television ads,” he said.

Page 2 of 2 - Groups including political action committees donated about $934,000 to candidates, most of it to incumbents, FEC records show. That represents about a fifth of all donations last quarter.

Boston residents were by far the biggest source of donations of $200 or more, giving about $400,000 to candidates in races across the commonwealth.

Inner suburbs such as Newton, Cambridge, Wellesley and Brookline were in a class of their own, with residents of each giving larger donations that totaled between $72,000 and $115,000.

4th District

Joseph Kennedy III raised a staggering $1.3 million last quarter, most of it from individual donors who gave $200 or more.

Republican Sean Bielat, who unsuccessfully challenged Frank in 2010, collected $217,836 from April to June. Brookline Republican Elizabeth Childs trailed him with $50,694, while Fall River GOP candidate David Steinhof raised $18,486.

Kennedy's fundraising efforts stretched across the country. Most donations of $200 or more came from Massachusetts, for a total of about $579,800, but Kennedy also received about $215,800 from New Yorkers, $71,700 from Illinois residents and $70,700 from Californians.

In Massachusetts, Bostonians were his biggest source of support, giving more than $130,000. Cambridge residents gave more than $70,000.

Inside the district, Newton led the pack with about $53,000 in donations, followed by Wellesley, about $35,600, and Brookline, about $28,000.

Kennedy also raised $94,539 from committees, ranging from the United Mine Workers of America Power PAC to Maryland U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer’s campaign committee. Altogether, he has raised about $2.6 million toward his first-ever bid for elected office.

Bielat raised all his money from individual donors. He collected about $118,500 in increments of $200 or more, the vast majority from within the Bay State, and $99,300 in smaller contributions.

Bielat raised the largest contributions from Wellesley, where he collected $23,850, followed by Newton, with about $17,650, and Dover, about $12,200. To date, Bielat has raised nearly $469,000, according to his report.

Childs contributed about $10,000 of her own money to her campaign last quarter. She also raised about $33,100 from individual donors. Brookline residents were her biggest supporters, giving her campaign about $7,750, followed by Wellesley, about $5,800.

Childs has raised $141,500 since announcing her candidacy.

Steinhof loaned his campaign $10,000 last quarter and has raised about $20,500 to date.

Compared to the $1.9 million in cash Kennedy ended the quarter with, Bielat had $165,625, and Childs, $26,204.